Violence, death and vandalism. Raj Thackeray has caused all of these in Mumbai. What he is doing may be wrong and he should be punished for it if so, but I think Raj Thackrey could be right in what he is talking about.

Raj Thackeray has voiced his concerns over the migration from UP and Bihar that is affecting Maharashtra. This is true not just for Maharashtra but for the entire country. Also, he only has a problem with the blue collared migrant labourers and not with the skilled professionals. So if someone is working in Maharashtra on merit, then Raj Thackeray does not have a problem, but his real problem lies with the fact that these labourers are given jobs in Maharashtra just because they are cheaper to employ.

Let us look at how migration of workers from Bihar and UP is affecting Mumbai. The heavy inflow of people has put tremendous strain on the infrastructure, the number of slums has increased, there are traffic congestion problems, the metro is collapsing, basic amenities are becoming scarce, law and order problems are increasing and unemployment is on the rise amongst the local people.

It is not just Mumbai which is facing this problem. Most metros in India are facing similar problems. So one will have to accept the fact that it is creating problems and this is what Raj Thackeray is pointing out (however his actions are illegal and uncalled for.)

While Bihar is the 3rd largest state in India in terms of population, UP is the most populous state in India. In the Rajya Sabha the two account for 47 out of the 245 seats and in the Lok Sabha for 120 out of the 545 states making them the most represented states in the government. Both Bihar and Uttar Pradesh receive a large chunk of the funds and packages from the Central government. Despite all this they are the most backward states in India with poverty, unemployment and illiteracy.

People migrate from Bihar and UP to other states to look for employment because there are no opportunities in their states. The opportunities don’t exist because governments after governments and ministers after ministers have been corrupt and have not done any work. This is why despite having the most number of representatives and most amount of funds available these states have not progressed.

In a way the government and the people of Maharashtra and other states are facing the consequences of incompetent and corrupt governments in Bihar and UP. The lack of development in Bihar and UP is no longer a state problem as it is now affecting the rest of the country as well. A system needs to be created under the control of the Centre whereby these states can be governed properly and developed and migration levels come down.

People in Bihar also need to realize that the rest of the country will not keep supporting and paying for the lack of sincerity of their elected leaders. They need to push for reforms and elect leaders who will bring about development. They need to understand that incidents in Mumbai are just fireworks and if they don’t find solutions larger explosions will take place in the future.

If things don’t change fast enough protests may start taking place in other places as well. I don’t agree with what Raj Thackeray is doing but somewhere along the way I also feel that Raj Thackeray could be right. You decide.